By IANS
Bhubaneswar : Tension ran high Thursday near the site of Posco-India’s proposed mega steel plant in Orissa as thousands gathered there, some to protest and others to support the project.
“At least 2,000 people, including women and children, have gathered near Balitutha till afternoon to protest the steel project by Posco,” a senior district police official told IANS over phone.
Similarly, supporters of the project also arrived in hundreds near Balitutha – considered the entry point to the proposed plant site in Jagatsinghpur district, some 120 km from state capital Bhubaneswar. Protestors have been blocking roads in the area for the past over a month.
Those protesting the $12-billion project say it would take away their homes and livelihoods. However, Posco and the Orissa government say the plant will bring economic prosperity to the state and create jobs, although it will uproot 500 families in the area.
South Korean steel major Pohang Iron and Steel Co proposes to build the steel plant by 2016 in the area. It is the largest foreign direct investment in India.
While Damodar Rout, sitting member of the Orissa state assembly and a former state minister, is leading the pro-Posco gathering, those opposing the project are being led by Abhaya Sahu, president of Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS), an anti-Posco group.
Around 100 armed policemen, including 30 officers, have been deployed in the area with people still arriving in jeeps, trucks motorcycles, the police official said.
There are chances of a clash between the groups as this is the first time that such a large gathering has collected. The protesters are not allowing Posco and government officials to enter the site.
“The meeting we are organising is to tell people about the benefits of the proposed project,” Rout told IANS.